Could the survival of “Russia’s greatest love machine” have altered the course of World War I?

Interview by Callum McKelvie

INTERVIEW WITH

CORYNE HALL

Coryne Hall is a historian and specialist in Romanov history. She is the author of a number of books on this subject including Queen Victoria And The Romanovs (2020) and To Free The Romanovs (2018).

Grigori Rasputin was a mystic who entered the Russian court when he claimed to heal the Tsar’s young son. However, in 1916 he met his end at the hands of assassins. Rasputin’s bizarre death only served to further the impression of him as an almost supernatural entity. In the years since his demise he has been the subject of numerous films, books and other popular media – even appearing as a villain in the recent Kingsman series of spy-comedies. But what if he had not died that fateful night in July? What if the assassins had failed? Would his survival have been unimportant, leading only to his death at the hands of the Bolsheviks in 1917? Or could he have helped alter the course of World War I?

Who was Grigori Rasputin and what was his role in the court?

Grigori Rasputin was a purported Siberian holy man, who invaded his way into the court of Nicholas II because Empress Alexandra believed that he could cure her son of haemophilia. Quite how he did this we don’t know, but he was somehow able to calm the young Alexei down during his bleeding episodes and the bleeding stopped, which in turn calmed Alexandra.

Because of his calming influence over both Alexei and Alexandra, he had access to the court and began to have influence in high places, for example suggesting the appointment of ministers. After the outbreak of World War I in 1914, the following year Nicholas went to command the front. Alexandra was left in charge and Rasputin began interfering in the government, suggesting ideas about food supplies, troops and battles. When things started going badly, people started remembering Alexandra’s German birth and became concerned.